The Good I Have Dreamed
by JeenaCOOLAN
Summary: Shortly before the Fellowship could come along with their plan, an unexpected situation arose for Godric.
1. Chapter One

Two thousand years.

It still boggles my mind that I have lived for so long. The years blur together into a mesh of colors and words. Of screams, and blood. Of tears and fear and the many variations of 'please don't do this'.

But in the end, time still passes by, like the flicker of a flame.

There are nights that I wake up from nightmares, nights where I remember my victim's faces or hear their pleas on repeat like a broken record. Those are the nights I feel the passage of time deep within my bones and thrumming under my skin in little red cells.

I feel it when I look up at the night sky, never seeing the sun or feeling its warmth.

Those nights occur more than most now. I cannot wake up without thinking of the pain on my victims faces, their screams, their bodies piling up by the dozens as I drained them dry over the course of my early years. When I didn't care about anything but survival.

My life does not have purpose anymore. Not like it did back then. I may have done horrible things during my human life and the early years of my immortal life, but I wasn't mindlessly wandering. I had a reason to live, then.

But not anymore.

My progeny, Eric, was what I clung to whenever the doubt, the anger, and the pain rose in my chest. When it threatened to spill out of my throat, leaving behind a burning sensation as proof of its existence. He is the closest thing I have had to a son my entire life. But he doesn't need me anymore.

I am proud of his successes, but I am also forlorn because he doesn't seek my advice like he did when he was young. He doesn't look at me with eyes full of awe, with trust, with determination to make me proud of him.

I miss those days the most out of everything. It is selfish, I know, but I cannot help but wish for someone to need me like he did again.

I will not lie; I have had thoughts about ending my life on occasion. It wouldn't take much, just walk out of my nest as the sun rises, or stake myself in the heart. It would take barely a few minutes.

I manage to fight these thoughts every time they come to the surface but sometimes, I wonder...

I wonder about a lot of things.

Such as if there is a place for us after we die. There most likely isn't. I mean, I don't see how monsters like us would deserve a heaven after everything we have done to humans over the span of years that we have existed on earth. I try to be better towards them but that doesn't erase my mistakes. So, even if there is a heaven, only the deserving is allowed in.

And I am not one of the deserving.

"Godric." Isabel Beaumont, my fellow nest mate, speaks softly. She places her hand on my shoulder and shakes gently, gaining my attention.

"What do you need Isabel?" I say in a polite tone, looking up at her as she stands over me.

Her eyes, however, are shifting around the room nervously, obviously looking to see if Stan is within hearing distance. But he is not. I sent him out to run errands, so he will not be back for a few hours. Hopefully longer, if we are lucky.

As much as I love him, Stan can be rather brash to humans and vampires alike. I try to be lenient with him because I was the same when I was his age. Hopefully, if given time, he will change for the better like I have.

"There is someone here who wishes to speak with you. Right now." She responds, her voice still quiet regardless of the fact that Stan is not here. There are many vampires in the room who view humans the same way as he does, which is why she is being so cautious.

My curiosity peaks. "What do they want?" I ask her.

She pauses, briefly, gathering her words before speaking again. "It would be best if we spoke about this in private." Her tone insisting.

I look at her, truly look at her, and realize how nervous actually she is. Her eyes continue darting around the room, her posture is tense, her lips are tight around the edges.

What on earth could this person want that has shaken her up so badly?

"Alright then. Take me to this person." I stand up from my chair – more like a throne, but I try not to think about that - and follow alongside Isabel. Her heels clack against the tile, sounding like the monotonous ticking of a clock. She leads me down the hallway, turns to the left and down a set of stairs. It takes all but five minutes to arrive to where the person is waiting.

Once I'm in the room, I am hit with a strong scent of human. I take a deep breath, relishing the smell, before looking at the person emanating it.

It is an adult woman. She has blond hair that stops at her shoulders, piercing olive-green eyes, a broad nose and full lips. She looks to be in her thirties but still retains some youthfulness. She has a healthy tan from spending days in the sun - a pang of envy courses through me - and she is wearing a navy-blue pantsuit that fits her well enough it was most likely tailored for her.

Getting over the shock of a human being in my nest, I give her a warm smile – hoping to ease her.

"You are very brave to walk into a vampire's nest. What is your name?"

I can hear her heart racing, like a hummingbird, as she walks over to me. But she shows no anxiousness on her face. "My name is Sasha Winters." She speaks softly and holds out her hand, waiting for me to respond. I give her a kind smile and gently shake her hand as she requested.

"Well Sasha Winters, how may I help you on this night?"

She bites her bottom lip, seeming to contemplate on what to say next when she blurts out. "I work with social services."

My eyes widen in surprise. Social services? Why would they need to speak with me?

She continues on speaking; I imagine if she stopped, she would lose her nerve. "I am here on behalf of a child that was placed into our custody just short of a week ago." She to the couch – where an opened briefcase is sitting on the middle seat. I nod in response and sit in arm chair beside the couch, she sits down on the right edge seat of the couch and picks up the first packet of papers from the briefcase. "His name is Felix and he is believed to be eight years old." She hands me the packet to look over.

On the front page of the packet is a picture of a boy who strikes a massive resemblance to me.

"What... What does this have to do with me?" I ask, my voice trembles with confusion.

The woman, Sasha, winces slightly. "Everything, sir." She takes another piece of paper from the briefcase and starts reading from it. "He, as you can see, bears a striking resemblance to you. We couldn't really believe it at first so we ran his DNA through every test we could. Ended up with no results."

"So?"

"I came here to ask for your blood." She responds, biting her bottom lip again. "We want to see if he is related to you."

I blink at her in astonishment.

Isabel, who I just now remember is in the room, coughs to get my attention. I look over at her questioningly.

"I just got a call from Stan. He will be back in less than ten minutes." Isabel says, worry written plain on her face.

I sigh deeply. "Damn it."

Sasha glances between the two of us. "I take it Stan is not welcomed in the nest?" Her posture is tense, as if she is ready to bolt and frankly, I do not blame her.

"No, he is welcomed, albeit begrudgingly." Isabel responds.

To keep myself from snickering, I ignore her comment. "Stan is our nest mate. He just... He does not like humans much." I say, looking at Sasha.

I grab the vial – I assume it is how she plans on holding my blood sample - from the briefcase with vampiric speed. My fangs emerge and, almost like white noise, I hear Sasha gasp quietly. I ignore her and bite into my wrist. I hold the bleeding wound over the vial and watch as it fills well over the amount that she requested.

Once it can hold no more, I cap it and place it back into the briefcase. "You must hurry off now. It would be best if you were gone before he arrives." I say as I grab the papers that we went over and place them back into the briefcase at, again, vampiric speed.

"We don't have much time Godric." Isabel whispers, it is quiet enough to where Sasha cannot hear her as she speaks but I fully can because of my vampiric hearing.

Sasha places her hand on my shoulder, stopping me mid motion. "We still need to talk about Felix."

"We will Sasha, but it is important for you to get out of here now." I say, almost in a snappish tone.

Just as I was about to practically drag Sasha out of the room, Stan saunters in.

The second Stan enters the room, Isabel goes to stand in front of Sasha defensively. We both attempt to shield her from Stan's sight but it is futile. Just one whiff of her scent is enough to put a gleam in his eye.

"No one told me you were going back to your old ways Godric." He drawls. "Color me impressed."

My eyes narrow. "Stan." My tone is firm.

He rolls his eyes. "I was just joking." He drawls while staring at Sasha, who isn't showing an ounce of fear even though her scent reeks of it.

"Stan, this woman came here to speak with Godric about a personal matter. This does not concern you." Isabel says, her tone commanding.

"And it concerns you, Isabel?" Stan's voice is full of his usual sarcasm.

"No. I just escorted Ms. Winter to meet with him."

"Uh huh. And Queen Leclerq is my aunt." He rolls his eyes again, even more heavily than before. "Why is she really here?"

"That is none of your concern. I would appreciate it if you and Isabel both left me to talk to Ms. Winters. Alone, please." I respond.

I don't know why I even tried to order him to leave. I know Stan will not listen to me when a human is involved. Especially if said human is right in the middle of our nest.

"I deserve to know what is going on!" He shouts.

"Not when it concerns Godric's affairs, Stan!" Isabel shouts back.

"It should concern me specifically when Godric is involved." He says in a steely voice, glaring at her. She stiffens, gearing up for a fight.

"Enough!" I shout at the both of them. "I will let everyone know when the time is right!" I give a stern look to Stan. "You hold no more importance of knowing than anyone else in this nest."

Stan takes his glare off of Isabel and aims it at me, but it holds no effect. I am older than him and I could put him in his place in a heartbeat. He knows this, which is why after a few tense seconds he bows his head. His hands are clenched into fists, however, and I can hear his teeth grinding.

"Of course, Godric." He growls. "I apologize." He then leaves the room in a stiff walk.

As soon as he is well out of ear shot, vampire ear shot anyways, we quickly escort Sasha out of the nest. Once she is driving down the road in her car, I take a deep breath and set my eyes on Isabel. She looks at me as well.

"What are you going to do if the results prove he is your descendant?" She asks.

I laugh bitterly. "I have no idea." And head on back into the nest, leaving her in the driveway.


	2. Chapter Two

Weeks go by before I hear from Sasha again. She calls my personal cell to let me know she has the results of the DNA test. She felt it would be better to give me the results in person rather than over the phone so, we decide that she should come back to the nest tonight what with Isabel and I being the only ones here.

The rest of our nestmates left for the night after I offered to pay for whatever they need to occupy their time. Now, Sasha will not be in any danger from them.

The second she parks her car I am outside to open the car door for her. She smiles politely and gets out of the driver's seat. We then head on back into the nest, walking towards the room where we first met.

Once we are in the room, she sits the briefcase on the couch's middle seat and opens it. I again, sit in the arm chair beside the couch. She grabs the first slip of paper in the briefcase once we are both sitting. "Normally, I would read the results out loud but I believe you would like to read them yourself. To process." She says, handing me the piece of paper. "Here."

I take the paper, gently, and begin to read. The second my eyes pass over the word positive; I freeze in place.

That boy... Felix... We are related.

How can this be possible? I did not have any children while I was mortal. I was more focused on war and bloodshed than lying with women.

It does not make any sense...

"He is related to you." Sasha says softly. I do not say anything in response to that, which makes her fidget in place. "I will leave you be to collect your thoughts." She closes her briefcase, gets up from the couch and heads out into the hall, passing by Isabel who is walking into the room just as she exits.

She nods a hello to the female vampire and goes into the hallway.

"Godric?" Isabel asks, noticing my still frame. She walks over to me. I yank my eyes from the paper and look at her.

"Yes Isabel?"

"Are you alright?" She asks.

I laugh, the sound hollow to my ears. "Of course not." I give her the piece of paper to read over. Her eyes widen with shock. "The test came back positive and I have no idea why." I sigh tiredly. "On top of that he has autism." I can feel the blood welling in my eyes. "I have no idea how to take care of a child, let alone one in his condition."

Isabel looks up from the paper, and sees the blood threatening to spill out of my eyes. She puts her hand back on my shoulder, squeezing comfortingly.

"Is it... Is it ridiculous for me to want try, anyway?" I ask her in a small voice.

"No." She says. "And remember Godric, I will be there for you every step of the way if you need me." Her voice is gentle.

"Thank you." I say quietly. A heavy sigh then escapes my lips as I remember that Sasha is in the living room. "I better go escort Sasha to her car. The others may be gone right now, but they could be back any time."

"Alright." She responds.

I smile at her reassuringly and head out into the hallway where Sasha is leaning on a wall leisurely. Once she sees me, she pushes away from the wall and looks at me.

"I am going to escort you to your car. If that is alright with you."

"I welcome it, sir."

We then head toward the main door of the nest and out to the driveway. A few minutes of silence go by as we walk a normal human pace before Sasha speaks up again. "I am sorry for bringing this onto you." Her voice is full of sympathy.

"It is not your fault." I respond.

"Still, it will not be easy to take care of Felix. Are you sure you even want to try?" She bites her bottom lip worryingly. "If he gets hurt at all-"

"I will not allow any harm to come to him Sasha. I know what the implications will be if that happens." I say wearily.

It is a terrible idea to take on this human boy. I know this. I mean, I am the vampire Sheriff, I have a nest full of vampires who barely tolerate humans at best and despise them at worst. I shouldn't even be allowed the opportunity to have custody but because of our blood relation, I have to be given a chance.

The law is the law, even with vampires involved. They would have to have physical proof that I am unfit to raise him in order to keep him from me.

Vampires and humans are already filled to the brim with tension, just waiting for any reason to start a war. A human child who was put into the care of a vampire and got hurt in said care would be the perfect excuse.

But the second I start to doubt my decision I think of Eric. My progeny who does not need me anymore. I ache for that, for someone to rely on me. For someone to love me as much as he did...

Sasha places her hand on mine in a comforting gesture. Warmth blooms where she touches.

"I want you to come meet him. Before you truly decide." She bites her lip again. "I don't doubt that you are genuine but I need to be sure you can get along."

I smile gently. "Alright." I look towards my home, the full moon in the sky basking it with an eerie glow. "I wouldn't want to force this on him without knowing if we can even bond."

"Good." She says, a few awkward seconds pass before she opens the door to her car and gets in. Once the door is shut and her seat belt is in place, she looks up at me. Her green eyes even more vibrant in the moonlight. "Goodnight, Godric."

"Goodnight, Sasha." I say quietly as she drives off into the night.

* * *

**888**

* * *

Over the next few days, it took some planning on both Sasha's end – as well as mine – just to be able to meet the boy. What with my day being most human's night, it was difficult getting to this point, but it was done and now we are heading into her office.

"Just try to remain calm, okay? He reads body language easily so if you look tense or uncomfortable, he will become tense or uncomfortable too." Sasha says in a soft voice. I nod, letting her know I am listening as we walk down the long hallway towards the room Felix is in. Passing doors along the way that open to rooms to which are used to unite potential parents with children.

I take slow and deep breathes as we finally reach the room that holds the eight-year-old boy with my young face.

I have not felt this nervous in years. I do not know if I like this feeling either.

Sasha grabs a hold of the doorknob, but doesn't open it. Instead, she looks over at me, her eyes blazing with an emotion that I cannot describe. "Are you okay?" She asks. "We can take a minute if you need it."

I shake my head in response. "No. I want to meet him." My voice is full of determination. "I need to." She gently smiles at me and twists the doorknob to open the door. Once we are in the room, I smell familiarity.

I smell home.

It will no doubt be distressing later on down the line, once I have time to think, but at this moment all I can think about is the boy that is playing with blocks on the floor. He is smiling brightly and his eyes are dancing with amusement as he plays with the adult male sitting beside him.

"Alex." Sasha greets the man warmly, giving him a smile that could compete with Felix's. The man, Alex, looks up at his name being spoken and smiles back Sasha. He then stands up from the ground and meets her halfway into the room, pulling her into a hug.

Felix just continues to build his ship, not even noticing the hug taking place. His eyes are now full of determination as he looks for the right pieces to complete the structure he is working on.

The second Alex and Sasha finish their hug, Alex looks over at me. His smile thins and his posture tenses. "I assume you are Godric." He speaks, his voice a low baritone. I am slightly surprised at the deepness, but none of that leaks out as we shake hands.

"I am." I say, smiling kindly. If I want to have a chance at speaking to Felix, I want all three of us - Alex, Sasha and I - to be in good terms. So, I don't comment on the fact that he is a werewolf. His eyes narrow slightly – he no doubts knows I can smell his werewolf scent - and looks from me to Sasha. She nods in confirmation, which seems to be enough for him because his shoulders lose their tension.

"I am Alex." He says simply.

I nod in response, focusing my attention back to Sasha once she speaks.

"Alex is in charge of the contact meetings we schedule here. He makes sure the environment is controlled and safe, not only for the children but the parents as well." Sasha explains, her eyes full of adoration for this man.

I wonder what it would take to have someone look at me like that...

I blink that thought away and look over towards Felix. He seems to have finished his ship and is now staring at us with impatience and curiousness in his eyes. For a child who has autism he seems to be very well behaved...

Alex notices where my eyes are lingering and smiles softly as he catches Felix watching us.

"Hey little man. Do you want to meet Godric?" He asks, walking over to the him. Felix nods fervently, reaching up to grab at the empty air. Alex's smile widens and grabs a hold of Felix's hand to help him up off the carpet. The boy smiles brightly at him before looking over at me again. Something tightens in my chest when our eyes connect.

He has my mother's eyes...

My mother, who I lost so long ago that I can barely even remember anything but her eyes. I suck in a breath and manage to smile back at him.

My throat is so tight I swear it feels like it might close up on me.

Felix then impatiently pulls his hand out of Alex's, not needing his help anymore, and practically skips over to Sasha and I.

"Hello." He says quietly. "My name is Felix." His words are a little slurred, and you can tell he is talking slower than he is used to, but you can understand what he is saying regardless. There is no doubt that when he talks at what he considers a normal pace, it will be a blur of words that will be hard to understand.

Right now, he is speaking in such a way it seems like it was practiced. I wonder if he was taught to speak this way in front of strangers or they in general just trying to help him with his speech.

My guess is probably both.

"My name is Godric." I respond. My voice is rough with emotion. Which emotion? I cannot honestly tell right now. I just know that looking at this boy make my eyes sting from blood tears wanting to shed.

"Do you want to play blocks with me?" He asks. His question is innocent enough but the implication behind it hits me in the chest like a brick. He wants to play with me...

Me!

I look at Sasha for guidance and she smiles encouragingly, giving my shoulder a slight shove. "Go on!" She whispers.

I swallow thickly before replying to the boy. "I would love to play blocks with you Felix." He smiles brightly and grabs a hold of my hand, tugging me over to the pile of Lego blocks. He goes on to explain, slowly and carefully what exactly he and Alex were doing before he goes to disassemble his ship.

"Do you want to build more ships?" I ask hesitantly.

He shakes his head fervently. "Nope! I want to play castles this time!"

I smile and go to grab a long yellow block that is just a few inches in front of me. "Castles it is then." I say.

We then stayed on the floor building blocks for hours after that.

Felix is difficult to adjust to, what with his loud voice and almost infinite energy, but I don't see it becoming something I won't be able to deal with in the future.

The longer I spent with him, the more I could see of myself in him. His laugh, his inability to take compliments, the way he fidgets if he has nothing to busy his hands with... Quite a lot of his quirks are things that I experienced when I was human.

And I don't know if that should terrify me or not. I don't care, really. Felix is so amazing that I find myself growing more and more content with my decision to take him in. I just hope he will be okay with the change in environment when he does finally go home with me...


	3. Chapter Three

"I don't know about this." Alex whispers, glowering at Godric. His fists are clenched at his sides and his posture stiff.

"He deserves a chance." I whisper back at him, referring to Godric.

"And what if his chance gets Felix hurt, Sasha?" He looks at me, his eyes cold. If I didn't know him like I do I would be afraid of those unfeeling eyes.

"It won't." I say in a firm voice.

He sighs deeply, rubbing his forehead with his fingers. "You better be right."

* * *

"Godric, no!" Felix says loudly. He rushes over to Godric, who looks terribly spooked, and grabs the dinosaur toy from his hands. "You ain't doin' it right! Like this!" He exclaims, and then demonstrates how the dinosaur is supposed to roar. It's a loud, obnoxious sound, but it makes Godric smile warmly.

"I don't know if I can beat that." He says, once Felix gives him the dinosaur toy back. Felix smiles shyly at the compliment and picks up his power ranger toy off the floor where he discarded it. Once he is settled again, they go back to playing.

Godric gets the roar right this time.

Alex, who is supervising them, smiles softly. Well, this won't be the first time Sasha proved me wrong, he thinks to himself.

* * *

"Hello Sasha." Godric says, his voice warm. I smile and walk over to him. "Where is Felix?" I ask, looking around to room. The boy is nowhere in sight.

"He is in the bathroom." A frown forms on his face. "Is it normal for him to be in there for this long?"

I answer with a chuckle. "Yes. But do not worry, we have had it checked out and there is nothing wrong. He just likes to take his time in there."

The toilet flushes and Felix exits the bathroom, his eyes bright. "I pooped!"

Godric and I burst out laughing.

After a good minute of nonstop laughing, Godric speaks. "That is good Felix." His voice is colored with amusement.

* * *

"He hasn't talked this much ever." Alex says, his eyes are wide with astonishment.

"Why?" Godric asks him.

"We don't know. The doctors however, think it has to do with his autism."

Sasha chimes in. "I think it has to do with his speech impediment. It makes it more difficult for him to talk, so he just doesn't do it."

"But that isn't fact, Sasha." Alex says, in his ever-calm voice.

"Well, whatever the reason, it does not matter. He is speaking to us now." Godric says. Sasha and Alex eye each other at his comment.

* * *

Sasha walks into the room to see Godric packing up Felix's belongings. He has been coming to every single appointment for the last three weeks to get to know Felix and since they get along so well, he can now take him home.

I will be sad to see Felix leave us, but because I am working on his case, I at least get to check on him every once in a while.

"I'm going to miss this." I say to him. "Talking to you, I mean."

"This isn't goodbye Sasha." Godric says, his voice warm.

"I know, but I consider you my friend and I-" My eyes widen. I can't believe I just blurted that out.

Godric smiles brightly, showing his teeth. "I consider you my friend as well." He takes my hands in his and squeezes comfortingly. "You have my phone number. I am just a call away."

I chuckle softly, mainly out of relief than anything else. "I know. I don't know why I am behaving this way."

He smiles, eyes shining with content. "It's Felix." He says, as if that is reason enough. I look over at the boy, who is packing away his stuff with determined focus. I look back at Godric and smile.

He is right, that it is reason enough.

* * *

"Now Felix, when we get inside, we head straight to the top floor of the house. Do you understand?"

Felix nods, his eyes determined, he is ready to do what Godric says. Even though he doesn't understand why. Godric is nice to him though, so he listens.

"Okay."

Godrics smiles at him and grabs his hand. Felix smiles back, tightens his hold on Godric's hand and walks by his side into the nest.

* * *

"It will work?" I ask Seraphina, the witch who I had ask to come and meet me.

"Yes. As long as you need him hidden, his scent will cease to exist." She answers.

"I don't know how I can thank you for this Seraphina."

She smiles at me. "Godric, there is nothing to thank. Taking in that boy, trying to do right by him... I want nothing more than to help make it easier on you."

I smile brightly at her in answer.

* * *

"I still cannot believe you built a whole new floor onto the house." Stan gripes. Godric just ignores him and continues to survey the added-on rooms.

"You promised Stan." Isabel says, her voice weary.

He sighs heavily. "I may have promised, but that doesn't mean I have to like it." Under his breath, he speaks again. "This was a stupid idea."

"You need to trust that Godric knows what he is doing." Isabel whispers to him.

* * *

"Godric?" Felix asks, his voice timid. My eyes open, bleary, to see Felix Is standing at the entrance of my bed room. His hands are wringing and his posture is tense.

"What's wrong?" I ask him, sitting up in the bed.

"I had a nightmare..." He answers shyly.

Smiling gently, I beckon him to come lay down in the bed with me. His eyes brighten and he speeds over. The second he gets into the bed I pull the blanket over the both of us and go back to sleep. Him on the left side of the bed and me on the right.

By the time the sun sets however, he is plastered to my side. Isabel comes into the room, expecting me to be waking up only to see us bundled up together in the covers. She smiles softly and leaves of the room to let us sleep a bit longer.

* * *

Eric narrows his eyes at his maker. Something is off with him and he can't tell what exactly it is. Which is a big deal because he can usually read Godric like an open book.

"Eric!" Godric smiles a bright smile and embraces me. I relish the tight hold for as long as I can. It has been a long time since we have last had contact like this and I can't help but miss it sometimes. "What are you doing here?" He asks me as soon as we are separated.

"I just came by to-" I start to speak when something bumps into my legs. I look down and see a young child staring up at me sheepishly. My eyes widen in surprise.

"Sorry!" The child exclaims.

"Felix! I told you to stay in your room!" Godric scolds the child.

"But you said he is a friend!"

Godric looks at me as he slowly nudges the child to his side. "I guess there is no hiding this from you now..." His voice is a tad weary.

…

Isabel and Stan are in the living room - of the base floor - watching the television when all of a sudden, they hear-

"WHAT?"

Later into the day, Eric will swear to his death he did not shriek. Stan will say otherwise and continuously make fun of him for the next few weeks.


	4. Chapter Four

It has been six months since Sasha came to me with Felix. Six blissful months full of nothing laughter and joy and love. I still cannot believe that Felix is in my life. That little boy, so full of innocence, looks at me with nothing but trust in his eyes...

Reminds me of when I first made Eric into a vampire. He had the same doe eyes when it came to this world. He looked to me for guidance, just like Felix does now. I missed that more than I thought.

Having someone need me in their life doesn't lighten the load of my past. But it does brighten my future.

I just hope it is the right thing for Felix. Most, if not all, of the vampires in our nest know of him now. They are used to having him around, especially with the spell that Seraphina had casted which hides his human scent, but they are still hesitant to get close. I don't know if it is out respect for me, or fear of harming him and facing my wrath.

Either way, the time we have spent together has been relatively peaceful.

I have learned so much about Felix in the time that I have had him as well, it is alarming in a way, how easily it was for me to fit my life around him.

Because of his autism he has to have a daily routine. My life before required a routine as well, what with my being Sheriff of a whole state's worth of vampires.

There is a lot that I have to fit into a certain amount of night hours.

But with his autism, he requires an even stricter schedule and he had to change a lot of it to just fit me into his life.

I wince at that first month of his living in the nest with me. Trying to change his sleeping patterns to fit mine was the biggest struggle we had to face to be honest, but thankfully we were able to resolve it within a span of weeks.

We still have problems, like his separation anxiety and those awful nightmares he occasionally has, but I wouldn't give him up in a heartbeat.

A loud noise startles me out of my sleep. I quickly get out of my bed to head towards Felix's room, which is where the noise came from.

"Felix?" I ask loudly. Hoping that he may just be up because of a nightmare.

Once I am at the door to his room, I open it only to have a strange scent blast me in the face. I scan the room frantically, eyes zeroing in on the opened window beside his bed, curtains flapping in the wind.

"Felix!" I ache to move closer, to scan the area outside. But it is early in the morning and the sun is just starting to pour out from behind the trees.

Because of this being a nest for vampires, we have no windows in the house. Felix's room only has one because he likes to use his telescope to survey the outside area.

I back away from the room and close the door, though it is more like a slam than anything.

Everyone else is in their deep sleep so they wouldn't have heard the door slamming even if I had intended for them to. They wouldn't be able to do anything what with the sun rising.

My heart begins racing, blood wells in my eyes and the air in my lungs rushes out in frantic gasps. I go back to my room and pick up my phone from the nightstand by my bed.

I know Sasha doesn't like it when I call her while she is asleep but I am such a state of panic at this point I don't even care. As I start to dial her number, the phone rings.

It is an unknown number, but I answer it regardless. "Hello?" My voice is rough sounding even to my ears.

"You missing someone Sherriff?" The unknown male asks, his voice mocking. My hand clenches around the phone. If I am not careful, I will definitely break it. I don't care about the phone though.

"Do you have him? Do you have Felix?!" I shout into the phone.

"We do." The unknown male is calm, I want nothing more than to reach through the phone and strangle him.

"Who is we?!"

"Aw, I am hurt Sheriff. It seems we aren't as known as I thought. Sarah, honey? You owe me a pie for that!"

A female voice, in the distance, speaks back to the male. "Well then, I will be right on baking that pie for you Steve. Would you like apple, blueberry, or blackberry?"

"Heck, why not all three? We have all day to eat em." He emphasizes the word day.

Sarah... Steve... That is when it clicks into place. My eyes narrow. "Steve Newlin." I comment, rage coloring my voice.

He laughs delightedly. "I knew you would catch on! Good job Sheriff!"

"What have you and your blasted Fellowship done with my son!"

"That boy is not your son, vermin!" He quickly drops the cheerful facade, his voice now full of disdain. "We refuse to leave a human child in the hands of a vampire! It is against God's Word!"

My chest tightens. "What are you going to do him?!"

A few seconds go by before he responds, his voice calm like before. "Nothing. That is, if you do what we say."

"What do you want me to do?" I ask him.

"When the sun goes down tonight. Come to the warehouse on Bigby Street. You do not fight, and you do not run. Got it?"

Taking a deep breath, I respond. "And what happens once I get there?"

"You let my men bind your hands and place a sack over your head. Remember, if you do not cooperate, you will never see Felix again." He says, his voice demanding.

"Fine, but you better not harm a single hair on his head. Do you hear me?!" I shout at him.

"As long as you follow my instructions, you will have nothing to worry about."

* * *

_****Twelve Hours Later****_

* * *

"You going to pick the brat up?" Stan asks me.

In order to keep the others from knowing of what is going on, I told them that Felix is spending the weekend with Sasha.

She has become a good friend to Felix – me as well - over these last six months and she loves having him spend weekends with her. It can only be the weekends because of Felix's sleep schedule. She picks him up Saturday evening and keeps him with her till Sunday night. She is able to sleep through the day and spend the one full night with him.

She comes to visit us but that often has to do with work, this is the only way she can ever really spend time with him outside that.

"How many times do we have to go over this Stan?"

He smiles lazily. "As many times it takes, I guess. You know I will continue calling that kid whatever I want."

I sigh heavily, not really in the mood to deal with him. I need to head toward the warehouse as soon as I can.

"We will be having another talk once I get back then." I say, voice firm. Stan just rolls his eyes and heads off toward the communal living room. I sigh in relief the second he is out of hearing distance, and head on out.

It takes barely ten minutes for me to get to the warehouse, but once I am there I on head inside. The lights are off, but because of my heightened senses I can see the armed men waiting for me. I walk up to the guy in front, he is holding the handcuffs in one hand and a sack in the other. Just like Steve said.

"Is Felix okay?" I ask him, I doubt he will answer me but I have to try.

"The kid is fine." The man says to my surprise. "Put your arms out. Now."

I do as he says and he places them on my wrists. They automatically start to tingle from the magic that is infused into the cuffs. I test their strength, pulling at them with all I have but they do not break apart. I knew they would do something like this...

The man places the sack on my head the second I stop pulling at the cuffs, and speaks again. "Just do as the boss says, and that boy won't get hurt."

It takes us a few hours by car to reach Steve's location from the warehouse. They probably drove in circles to confuse me and to keep me from knowing how we got here. Once the care stops, they drag me out of the back seat and we head to where Steve is waiting for us.

"Good, you followed my instructions to the letter." Steve speaks, his voice is full of unbridled smugness. The man on my right side rips the sack off my head. Once I am used to the bright lights, I barely give Steve a passing glance as I scan the room.

This is a church. They brought me to a church. It seems pretty ordinary, if I am honest.

It has large windows that reach the ceiling on both the left and right sides of the pews, said pews stretch to about halfway down the room, a few feet from the last set there is a table in the center that looks like an altar of some sort. The fellowship's insignia is on a blue cloth that is strapped over it.

I eventually focus on Steve and notice he is by himself. His wife is nowhere to be seen, and neither is Felix. My heart sinks at this revelation. There isn't even a scent of the boy on Steve.

I must be making a face because Steve speaks. "Did you really think we would bring him here?" He asks, his voice full of disbelief. He then shakes his head at me in mock sympathy. My blood boils, instincts making me want nothing more than to rip his head clean off his shoulders.

The thought startles me out of my anger. I haven't wanted to physically harm a human being in years. I should feel guilty, and disgusted, but just thinking of him touching Felix...

I close my eyes at the thought. Not even the guilt would stop me from doing anything to keep my son safe.

Steve looks at me, curiosity brimming in his eyes, before gesturing towards he guards that are "escorting" me. "Come with me." He orders.

He then turns around and heads towards the altar. He takes a sharp turn towards a door on the left side of the room just as soon as he reaches the alter. We continue walking for a few minutes - the church is a lot bigger than I thought because there are several rooms and hallways surrounding the main area - before we stop.

"This is where you will be staying." He says, opening the door and walking inside. The guards that have me in their grip pulls me in with them, the cuffs on my hands making it physically impossible to fight back.

I have no choice but to follow.

Once inside, I look around the room, confused. It is nothing more than a bedroom. The window is boarded up, but other than that this is not even close to a jail cell.

"Where is Felix?!" I ask, not bothering to question the state of the room.

Steve smirks, I want nothing more than to wipe it off. "He is safe."

"That is not enough! Tell me where is he is!" I demand.

"You really are a curious creature, aren't you?" Steve sighs heavily, as if this is a grievance for him. "You will find out soon enough. Just keep doing what we tell you and your 'son' will be okay."

I am dragged towards the bed by the guards. "By the way, the door and window are warded quite heavily. If you even attempt to leave, they will shine a light that is so bright you will burn within seconds. Just getting close to them will trigger it, so do be careful." He says in a cheery voice, he then leaves the room.

The armed guards follow behind him and the second the door shuts a thrum of magic emanates from it. Feeling restless and panicked, I pace the floor, keeping a good distance from the door and window.

I need to find Felix but if what Steve said is true then there is no way for me to break out without getting hurt.

If it were just me on the line, I would break out regardless of the consequences.

But Felix needs me...

My hands clench in the cuffs and I sigh heavily. I could figure out what they are planning to do with me and try to find Felix once I escape. But Felix might not even be here. What would happen if I escape? They might hurt him... I can't risk that.

I look towards the extremely boarded window; no light could peak through when it turns daytime. They were pretty thorough with sun proofing this room.

Sighing, I sit back down on the bed. Whatever it is they are planning; they need me alive. I just need to wait because Eric will come looking for me and when he does, Steve will never know what hit him.


	5. Chapter Five

"Where is Godric?" I ask Stan as soon as I enter the living room. "It has been more than enough time to retrieve Felix from Sasha's house."

Stan tenses, sensing an argument. "I don't know." He drawls, making it seem like he doesn't care about anything.

"Why is no one looking for him?!" I exclaim. "It is not normal for him to dally like this."

Stan sighs. "Relax, I called Eric."

That startles me. "What?" I look over at Stan, staring at him incredulously. My voice is colored with disbelief.

He scowls at me. "Don't get your panties in a twist. I only called out of respect for him being Godric's progeny."

"Well, what did he say? Has he seen him?" I ask.

"No."

I glare at him. "Have you sent anyone out to look for him?"

"No." He repeats his one worded answer in a blasé tone.

"Why the hell not?!" I practically shout at him.

"Eric is coming over with his 'special' human." He scoffs. "No doubt her vampire will come along with her."

"What human?"

"She is Bill's lover and supposedly has some information. For some God forsaken reason she actually wants to help Eric with this." He sneers, and speaks again, although this is more to himself than anything. "I bet she owes him a favor and thinks this will get her out of it."

"When will they get here?"

Stan seems to be getting pretty tired of all the questions. "I dunno. But I can tell ya this, if they aren't here in the next half hour, I am going out to search for myself."

"Why aren't you doing that now?"

"Because they have a plan that they want to let us in on."

"How can they have a plan when we don't even know where Godric is?!"

"I don't know Isabelle. But we gotta listen regardless." His tone turns sour.

It didn't take long for Eric to arrive with the human after that moment. Stan was right that Bill would come as well, he has been stuck to the human's side since they walked in actually. You can tell that they are romantically involved just by the looks of concern he keeps giving her.

I am a bit surprised about Stan; he usually doesn't care enough about what goes on outside of the nest to know about something like this. Either way, they are not here for long, barely a minute, when Eric immediately gets to the topic at hand.

"Godric is missing." He says, his voice quiet like it always is.

Stan snorts. "We know that dip shit. It's been four hours, four and a half if we want to include the time it took for you to get here. What, had to fix your hair?" He sneers at Eric.

Damn it, I should have known better than to take Stan at his word. Eric may be Godric's progeny but something about him has irked Stan since the beginning and he's as hostile to Eric now as he was then. He shows occasion bouts of respect, like calling the blonde vampire about what happened in the first place. But that rarely ever happens.

Eric just ignores him for the most part, but during moments of duress - now being one of them - Eric is not the best with his temper. Eric's jaw tenses and it looks like he is about to retort when the blonde human places a gentle hand on Eric's shoulder. His tense posture loosens as soon as she touches him and he lets out a barely there huff.

My eyes widen slightly. "Maybe we should all just calm down a bit. Okay?" The human says with her heavy Texan accent, looking between Stan and Eric. She's either very brave or very stupid to willingly step in between tense vampires like that.

Seeing this as the perfect time to speak, I clear my throat. "It's all well and good to actually know that he is missing. But we need to find out where he is."

Sookie smiles, her eyes are full of nervousness. "He is with the Fellowship of the Sun."

My eyes widen. "How on earth do you know that?"

Sookie's stammers a bit but before she can actually answer Eric speaks up. "We asked a witch for her services." His tone is frosty and his eyes are defiant. Almost as if he is asking me to question his answer.

I stare at Eric, Sookie and Bill for several seconds, looking for weakness in their stoic faces but I see none. I don't know if I fully believe this 'witch' explanation but at this moment in time I honestly do not care.

Finding Godric is more important than discovering why they are lying.

"Do you have a plan?" Stan asks her, his voice harsh.

"Yes." "No." Sookie and Bill both speak at the same moment. They then glare at each other.

"I told you, you are not doing it." Bill says, his voice stern. Sookie's glare turns defiant. I smile slyly. Bill sure have his hands full with this one.

"For the last time Bill, you do not get any say over what I can and cannot do. If doing this saves Eric's maker then I am willing."

Bill stares intently into Sookie's eyes, after a few tense moments he lets out a defeated sigh. Sookie smiles brightly before turning back to look me and Stan.

"This plan will require another uh, living applicant, to actually help it come off the training wheels. Do you perhaps know of someone who would be willing to help?" She is looking at both Stan and I but is clearly only asking me. She must have been warned by Bill or Eric, probably both, about Stan's hatred towards humans.

Well, hatred for all but one little boy. My heart squeezes in my chest. "I may have someone." I say.

Do not worry Godric, that Fellowship will pay for touching even a single hair on your head.

* * *

**888**

* * *

Felix whimpers. The room he is in is cold and so dark. He can't even see his fingers as he hastily wipes away the tears that just keep on streaming down his cheeks. He doesn't know where he is, or how he got here. He just knows that he wants Godric.

Godric is nice, he doesn't lock Felix in cold and dark rooms after taking him from the only home he has ever had. He doesn't even remember how that happened. He just remembers falling asleep after spending all night playing with his brand-new Lego set that Sasha got him as an early birthday present.

He sniffles again, just the thought of the people who are nice to him makes him sad. He just wants to go home.

Suddenly the door to his room opens, he flinches at the light that blasts him in the face. The mean man walks in with a woman, she is pretty. Blonde hair and a nice smile. But she is with the mean man, she can't be nice.

Can she?

"Hello darling." She says, kneeling down to meet my eyes. I sniff again and wipe away the last of the tears.

"Hi." I whisper. My voice won't come out so good and it hurts to speak.

"My husband here didn't mean to scare you. We just wanted to get you away from the evil vampire who had you in his care." She says, her voice quiet and warm. I want to hug her, but I don't know her. I know Godric, and Sasha, and Alex! I know Stan, Eric, and Izzy!

"They ain't evil! They're my friends!" I say, my voice louder than before. I wince because the pain is worse than before.

The woman looks at me with a sad smile. "No sweetheart. They are evil. I assure you." She reaches out to me with her hand, I flinch away. She retreats. "Please, I don't want to hurt you. I want to help you!"

Steve rolls his eyes. "Come on Sarah. We will come back in a few hours. Spending a bit more time being hungry should make him more grateful" He sneers.

Sarah, which is the woman's name, looks at me for a bit. It feels like forever before she gets up off the floor and quietly follows the mean man outside of the room. I start to panic at the thought of being in the dark by myself again and ignoring the pain in my throat, I start to scream.

"No! NO DON'T GO! Please! Let me go home! Let me GO! GODRIC! GODRIC HELP ME!"

Despite my efforts, the door shuts behind them, leaving me alone. I don't try to stop the tears flowing down my cheeks this time.

* * *

**888**

* * *

"Hey Alex," I walk into his office. "Has Godric called you at all today?" I ask, my voice a tad tense as the words fall from my lips.

He looks up at me from the paperwork on his desk, his usually tranquil face transforms into a questioning frown making wrinkles on the edges of his eyes stand out.

"No." He responds, his voice quiet. "Why? Did he try calling you again? I thought he would know better than to do that after the first time."

He says this because today is one of the very few days off that I can have for the month. On these days, I tend to sleep in as late as I can and also laze around all day.

Godric didn't know about that however, so when he finally was able to take Felix home with him, he ended up calling me on one of my days off.

Because his days are my nights the call ended up being late in the evening. I wouldn't have minded so much about the time, he has called me around that time during work days as well, but my days off are rare and I like being alone and not have to think about work.

I did answer all of the questions that he had, but I was very unprofessional about it and lectured him about calling me on my days off.

So, now, if he ever has any questions on my days off, he calls Alex for help. They still don't get along very well, stilted silences and awkward glances don't really do a lot even if you know a person for six months, but they remain cordial with each other.

Which is a lot better than how Alex usually is with vampires.

"No." I sigh heavily. "I've had this bad feeling all day and wanted to make sure..." My voice trails off. I don't exactly know what I wanted to make sure of. My hunch? What hunch though?

Alex brings me back out of my head with a question of his own. "Why don't you call him on your phone if you are worried?" His voice still passive, though I can tell that he is starting to get worried too by the look in his eyes.

Alex is my best friend and I have known him practically my entire life, so I am safe to say I can read him pretty well. He isn't very open with his emotions, and always has a calm façade when around strange people but, he does have a big heart.

He may not like Godric very well, but that doesn't mean he wants him to be in trouble.

"I did, but he wouldn't answer." I say pointedly, Alex's questioning eyes to widen in alarm.

Godric always answers his cell phone, unless he is asleep. He carries it on him at all times and no matter where he is or who he is with he will always answer.

Alex stands up from his desk and comes over to me. His face set in a determined scowl.

Shit, I think, I do not like that look on his face. That look tends to lead us doing stupid things.

"Then we should go speak to him in person." He responds.

My eyes widen and my heart starts racing. "We can't go to the nest! That is a very bad idea!" I practically shout, no doubt alarming any colleagues nearby.

He narrows his eyes at my comment. "No, it was a bad idea when you went alone to meet Godric at the beginning of all of this."

"That was different and you know it!" I hiss.

"How was it different?" He asks, his question full of sarcasm.

Not knowing what to say, nor having any defense for what I did, I ignore the question. "You know very well that the second you step foot into that building we will be swarmed." I exclaim. "Werewolves and vampires do not mix. Those are your words, Alex!"

"I have been nice to Godric these past months. I will be fine."

"Nice? Alex, not glaring at him anytime he comes to visit does not equal being nice!" I scowl at him and block the door with my body, knowing he is going to try to exit the room eventually.

He will be able to move me, but I need to at least try to be a nuisance.

"Sasha, quit being stubborn for one day in your life and let me go with you. I know very well you plan on going over there to talk to him anyways. You only came to ask me if he called just to see if you needed to."

I look in his eyes for a few seconds to see if there was any chance of persuading him otherwise. But I know Alex, I know he will not let this go. So, I mutter, "Fine. But we will have to wait till the sun sets. Otherwise they will all be asleep."

"That is okay with me." He responds.

Sighing heavily, I step into the hallway to let Alex out of the office. I glare at him halfheartedly before walking off towards the building's front door.


	6. Chapter Six

"As I have said before, this is a horrible idea." Bill chimes in as soon as Sookie finishes proposing the plan that she and Eric cooked up to us.

She glares at him, her eyes blazing with irritation. "Do you have anything better Bill? I can get into the church without any suspicion. It is a good idea!"

"It's a good idea to enter a dangerous area with people who would happily hurt you if they find out who you are?" He asks her, crossing his arms across his chest. "Sookie-"

"Shut the hell up!" Stan bellows, stopping Bill in midsentence. Everyone in the room then looks over at him questioningly.

Stan may be the most hot-tempered vampire in this nest but he rarely ever raises his voice like this. He tends to rely on his brute strength to scare and intimidate people into do what he wants. "You hear that?" He asks once he gets our attention, and stands up from the couch he was previously lazing on. "A car is coming down the road."

Once that sentence is out of his mouth, we (Eric, Bill and I) put our attention to what is going on around us and realize that Stan is correct. It's a few miles away, but we do indeed hear the engine of a car coming down south towards our nest.

"I recognize that engine." I say, not realizing the words coming out of my mouth till it's too late. Stan glares at me, recognizing the engine too but wanting to keep who it is from the others in the room.

"What are we going to tell her?!" I ask him, referring to the woman who is driving.

"Why on earth are you asking me? I have never even spoken to her, that was all Godric." He responds.

"Who is 'she'?" Eric asks, his voice hard with irritation. Stan rolls his eyes, not intimidated at all. I want to sigh but it would do know good right now what with how tense everyone is.

No doubt a fight will break out between the men in the room if they are given a reason.

I look over at Sookie and Bill to see them staring at Stan and I like we have both grown a second head. Eric is glaring at Stan, no doubt the question he has asked was meant for Stan too.

"Her name is Sasha." I say, trying to keep the fear out of my voice. I am not afraid of her, obviously, but of what is to come if she finds out what is happening. "And she is going to be trouble."

* * *

**888**

* * *

I park the car in the driveway of the nest. Once the car is full not stopped and I have the keys in my hand, Alex and I step out and head up to the door.

We don't get very far though, when Isabel steps outside to meet us. Worry is written heavily across her face.

"Sasha, why did you bring a werewolf with to our nest?!" Her voice is almost shrill, far from how her usual calm and soothing voice.

"I need to speak with Godric." I respond. "And Alex being the stubborn oaf that he is, wouldn't let me come alone this time." Alex tenses up at my side when three more vampires come out to stand on each side of Isabel.

I recognize Stan and Eric but the third one I do now know.

"If that mutt of yours takes one more step you won't have to deal with him anymore." Stan all but growls.

"Enough Stan." Eric says, his voice passive. Stan gives him a steely glare but doesn't say anything else. His posture stiffens though, as if he is gearing up for a fight regardless of what anybody wants.

The third vampire, who looks the type to not put up with nonsense, speaks up. "Godric is not here at the moment. You will have to come back at a later date." His voice is voice is stern, as if he is talking to a bunch of misbehaved children rather than adults.

I clench my fists, anger bubbling up inside. "I know something is wrong and I want one of you to tell me now damn it!"

"He has been captured." Another voice speaks. We all look over towards the person it came from. A blonde woman has just walked over to stand by the vampire I do not know. She must have come outside while we weren't paying attention.

"Sookie!" The unknown vampire chastises her.

"She seems like a good friends of Godric's Bill! She has the right to know!"

"She is more than just a friend of Godrics." Eric responds. "She is the social worker who was in charge of Felix." He looks over at Sookie. "Felix is more or less Godric's son."

Ignoring the information dump Sookie seems to be getting, I ask. "What do you mean he has been captured?" There is a tremor in my voice. "If... if he is in danger then where is Felix?"

Every one of them goes silent. "He... he's not with you?" Isabel asks, her voice possibly goes even shriller.

"No!" I exclaim. "Who told you he was?!"

"Godric. He said you took him for the night!"

Fear grips my chest in a vice tight hold. Alex grabs my hand and squeezes comfortingly.

"Oh God..." Isabel whispers, turning over to Eric. "What... what if they have him?" She asks. "It would be the best way to get to Godric, that boy is his life!"

Eric's jaw clenches. "They have to. If he isn't with her." He gestures at me.

"What are we going to do now? Do we stick to the plan?" She asks aloud, not aiming at anyone in particular.

The human woman, Sookie, answers. "We have to."

"We can help!" I exclaim.

Stan snorts. "A human would just get in the way. Thanks, but no thanks."

"I'm not human." Alex responds. His voice is deadly calm.

Stan snarls at him. "We don't want your help either!"

"Stan!" Isabel snaps.

He looks over at her. "Are you seriously considering letting this mutt help us?"

The third vampire – Bill, I remind myself – speaks up. "It would benefit the plan." He looks over at Eric. "They wouldn't expect a werewolf."

"Please!" I whisper. "If I can't do anything then at least let Alex." I plead.

They all look at each other, contemplating. Barely a minute passes by before Eric speaks again.

"Come inside and we will let you in on what we are planning."

* * *

**888**

* * *

"Trust me when I say that you will love this church and will want it to be the venue for your wedding!" Sarah exclaims, she smiles a bright smile at both Hugo and I. It looks sincere, but if you are an expert on reading people you can tell she is putting on a show.

But I could be being paranoid. I know this plan will work as long as we play the part convincingly, but I still feel nervous. I grab Hugo's hand, and squeeze. Hoping to comfort him as much as it comforts me.

I smile back at Sarah, just as brightly, as we head into the main area of the church.

When Godric's nest mates, Eric, Bill and I were discussing ideas to get into the church we managed to find some blueprints of the building and find out that this church does have a basement. It is a convoluted basement with multiple halls that intersect and if you are not careful you will definitely get lost in them.

We deduced that they might be keeping in the basement and that is the main focus for why we are here.

Hugo and I have to find out where they are holding Godric. Hopefully we will be able to get him out of wherever they are holding him and find a place inside the church to hide well enough.

I will then call Eric to tell him that we have Godric and once nightfall hits, he and the rest of his nestmates – along with Alex the freaking werewolf - will attack the church. While everyone here is dealing with them, we will slip Godric out.

It's not a fool proof plan, anything could go wrong, but it's the only one we have.

As soon as we enter the church, Sarah rushes over to Steve and kisses his cheek. "Honey, these two wonderful people here are thinking of having their wedding in our church. Come say hi and help me with the tour!" She pulls him over to us; he rolls his eyes at her but comes along anyway.

Great, now we have to worry about Steve. Oh well, when it comes down to it, Hugo should be able to distract them well enough for me to go looking around in the basement. With my telepathic abilities it should be easy for me to maneuver this place without being seen.

Regardless of this setback I use this moment to invade his thoughts. While I can hear thoughts without touching people, it is easier to do so when touching. So, I raise my hand to shake his.

"Hello, my name is Holly." I nod over to Hugo. "This is my fiancé, Rufus."

"Well, hello to the both of you!" Steve says cheerfully, grabbing my hand to shake.

'I cannot WAIT for tomorrow. Watching that vampire burn is going to be amazing! It's too bad Sarah wants to keep that brat of his. I would let him burn too, even if he is just human. I would find a way...'

I let go of his hand abruptly, masking my anger with another false smile.

They have the boy Godric is in charge of too... That is going to make this a bit more difficult.

I clear my throat and speak up. "This place sure is beautiful." I look over to Hugo. "It is now officially at the top of the list. Wouldn't you say so, sweetie?"

Hugo smiles at me. He is definitely a better actor than I. His smile is so charming even I would swoon over it, regardless of whether Bill was in the picture or not. "Definitely." He says.

Steve smiles brightly at us, it's even brighter than Sarah's. "Well, maybe that tour Sarah was talking about will seal the deal for you!"

The tour of the church didn't take too long, which made it impossible to figure out where where Godric is. We went past the main door to the basement – stupid idiots told us themselves when Hugo asked where the door went – but the Newlin's were persistent to stick close to us.

Hugo tried to keep their attention on him multiple times by asking about the church's history but they would try to keep me in the conversation as well.

If I didn't know how evil they were I would call the genuinely nice people.

"I hope you enjoyed the tour!" Sarah says, in that bright and cheery voice of hers. At this point I just want to strangle her.

"We sure did!" Hugo exclaims. He gets closer to me and rests his arm on my lower back. "Didn't we?"

"It was amazing to hear everything you know about the church, and the architecture is beautiful." I respond. Suddenly, an idea popped into my head.

They have several bathrooms in this church and one of them was pretty close to the basement door...

"If it is alright with you, Rufus and I would like to discuss in private about our decision." Hugo looks at me, his eyes calculating.

"Go on ahead." Steve says. "I have to get back to some business I had at hand." He grabs my hand again, giving it a firm shake. "It was lovely to meet you. I hope you choose our church for your wedding."

I smile at him in response. He kisses his wife on the head and exits the main area of the church – where we are.

"I will go sit down in the pews while you discuss." Sarah says, she then does as she said and goes to sit in a pew. The pew she chose to sit in is near the front of the church, where the preacher would preach.

Once she is out of hearing range I look over at Hugo.

"What are you planning?" He asks.

"Sarah said during the tour that because this church is so big that they have bathrooms all over."

"Huh." Hugo smiles a relieved smile. "I was wondering how we would be able to pull off getting away from them."

"It sounds simple but it is the only way I can think of right now."

"So, how do you want to do this?"

"We go tell Sarah that we will choose this church for the wedding. She will no doubt want to go into details about it straight away, she seems the type."

He sighs heavily. "I will have to be the one listening to her while you look around, won't I?"

I grimace. "You did offer up to be the distraction.

He rolls his eyes. "Alright. Let's do this."

He grabs my hand, his hand is still insanely warm, and we walk up to Sarah. She smiles at us, again, and stands up.

"What have you decided?"

"We want it done here." Hugo responds.

And as I have predicted, she squeals in delight and claps her hands together. "That is marvelous!"

"Rufus can tell you all about what we exactly want for the wedding. If you would like that, I mean."

"I would love that." She exclaims.

"Would it be alight if I exit this conversation for a bit? I need to use the restroom."

"Go ahead, the closest one to us is just down that hallway." She points over to the left side of us and there is indeed a hallway. It is by the main doors to the church. That was the hallway we went through to start the tour and it takes barely five minutes to reach the basement.

Perfect.


End file.
